1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to document creation and, more particularly, to automated document generation.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various types of documents often need to be created for all types of uses. Many times the documents require careful wording for clarity or legal purposes. As an example, legal documents need to be carefully crafted to provide the legal protection sought. However, the creation of documents is largely still manually performed by skilled or experienced persons. There are many books and sample documents that can be found after some effort, but it is difficult to not only locate the appropriate samples or forms but also to complete or alter the samples or forms for a user's particular situation. There are difficulties in finding the appropriate form to utilize and then, if found, how to properly complete the form is very difficult.
Also documents, such as legal documents, are often negotiated using paper versions. The paper version are sent between parties or attorneys who negotiate certain portions of the documents until all terms are agreed to or the negotiation fails. The paper versions are sent by manual mail or facsimile. Recently, documents are have been transmitted electronically between parties or attorneys. Even still, the negotiation of the contents is not efficient, particularly in the nature which changes to provision are made.
Neither document creation through use of forms nor document negotiation are easily performed without expert assistance. In the case of legal documents, the expert assistance needed is provided by an attorney.
Thus, there is a need for improved approaches to create or negotiate documents in an efficient and simplified way without the need for expert assistance.